


with love

by survivalinstinctvalkyria



Series: Survivalinstinctvalkyria's Enstars Ficember 2018 [3]
Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Marriage Proposal, Post-Canon, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-04
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-09-07 00:47:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16843780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/survivalinstinctvalkyria/pseuds/survivalinstinctvalkyria
Summary: "Let these feelings of love fly everywhere.Feeling the weight of our pasts together, we advance;Let's make a place to come home to that will never disappear.To my precious one, I strongly vow, I love you.♡So that this will last for eternity, with love..."♪It takes several proposals for the two of them to actually get engaged.Enstars Ficember Day Three: Favorite Ship (Keichi)





	with love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [acciss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/acciss/gifts).



> Two hours late because Mondays exist
> 
> I'm tired but I love keichi
> 
> Also I think shifted point of view midway through but not really?? I'm tired

“Let's get married!” a young Eichi exclaims. His playmate, a young temple boy, looks at him and sighs.

“We can't just  _ get married _ . There's paperwork, and we need to plan the event, and everything.” He takes Eichi's hand in his to wipe away the dirt that accumulated under his nails.

The two of them snuck out to the gardens earlier, and Eichi, amidst the scent of flowers and dirt, had decided that if he was going to be stuck with someone for the rest of his life, Keito would probably be his best bet.

(That's ignoring the fact that he obviously does deeply care for Keito, and hopes that Keito's affection really is genuine.)

“Really? Why does it have to be so complicated? Isn't marriage about being in love?” Eichi questions, letting Keito clean his hands.

“It is, and that's why people are willing to put up with the complicated parts.” Keito finishes his work, and lifts Eichi's hands up to inspect his nails. “But before anything, you need to get engaged?”

“Ah, you mean with a proposal?”

“Yep, with a ring and everything.”

“We don't have a ring, though.”

“You're right, but Ii think this will work for know. Here…” Keito releases Eichi's right hand, his now free hand going to pull a piece of grass out of the ground. “Will you marry me, Eichi?”

Eichi tilts his head, and nods. “Yes?”

Keito smiles, wrapping the grass around Eichi's ring finger and knotting it lightly. Once he's done, he pulls Eichi into a hug, and whispers in his ear. “We're engaged, then. It's a promise.”

Eichi returns the hug with a smile of his own. “I hope we can get married soon…” he trails off, watching the flowers sway behind Keito. “You can't go back on your promise, Keito, I really wanna get married.”

* * *

Eichi, now a second year in high school, stares down at his ring finger, having tied a piece of twine around it before school started a few hours ago.

But it doesn't he the same meaning he'd wanted it to, because in the end, he'd tied it by himself and for himself, all alone. A promise made to one's self like that means nothing, especially if it's riding off of another unkept promise.

It would've been nice if Keito had stayed true to his promise.

He knows he can't really hold it against him—they  _ were  _ children—but he was completely sincere when he said he wanted Keito to marry him.

He loved Keito then, and he still loves him now.

Maybe, the reason he's here at school with a piece of twine tied around his finger is because he wants everyone else to notice, because everyone else would include Keito, and he would  _ have _ to remember.

Class will be starting soon, but he's still out here staring at his ring finger—he must have lost track of time.

“Hey, you, quit dawdling; get to class!”

A hand lands on his shoulder, and he turns his head to meet their gaze.

It's Keito, and Keito isn't meeting his gaze. Instead, his eyes seem locked on something in front of Eichi.

_ My hand,  _ Eichi realizes, or, to be more specific, his left ring finger, still with piece of twine tied around it.

“You…”

Keito's voice isn't reprimanding or angry, just confused.

This is what he wanted, and yet Eichi can't help but feel lost. What is he supposed to say, right before class starts and they have to part again?

“Kei— Hasumi-kun, I'm sorry. I'll get on my way to class now.” Just as Eichi is about to walk away, he hears a faint  _ wait  _ from Keito.

When he turns back around, Keito is still staring at his ring finger. He notices Eichi's attention directed towards him, and quickly excuses himself.

“Sorry, I'll be on my way, as well.”

Maybe, just maybe, Keito  _ does _ remember.

* * *

A year later, the two of them are seated on a swinging bench, heads leaning against each other and fingers intertwined between them. Eichi presses his face against Keito's neck, enjoying the sanctuary of the nook.

“This is nice,” Keito comments, and Eichi hums. “We should do this more often.”

“We should,” Eichi agrees. “You know, we can do this all we want if we get married.”

“M-Married? Eichi, we're still in high school—we haven't even thought this through!”

“That's fine. I've wanted to marry you for a while, Keito.” He retracts his hand from Keito's, picking a flower out of the garden behind them. He loops it around Keito's ring finger, tying the stem into a neat knot. “There we go.”

Keito's face burns red, but he tries to keep his voice still. “That's… the same as the twine you had tied around your finger last year.”

“You remember that?”

“How could I forget? Even though we weren't talking, the ring on your finger mirrored that of the one from our childhood. Why?”

“Because I still loved you, Keito.”

“That's… ugh, quit flirting with me!"

“It's not flirting unreasonably—you're my boyfriend!”

Keito huffs and turns away.

Eichi ignores him, leaning back in seat and pulling a pensive face. “But still, we can't keep tying pieces of twine around our ring fingers and calling them rings. Hey, Keito, let's go get a ring.”

Keito is quiet for a moment.

“How soon do you want the ring?”

“Huh? Um, tomorrow, maybe?”

“Would right now be okay?”

“Right now? Keito, you know that wouldn't work unless…”

He trails off when he notices Keito reaching into his bag to grab a small box. When he opens, a simple golden band is revealed.

He takes Eichi's hand without saying anything, beginning to slide the ring onto it.

“I was keeping it on me in case the situation arose—it's a promise ring.”

Eichi smiles, a taking an affectionate tone as he speaks again. “So you really  _ did _ want to marry me, didn't you?”

Keito yanks his hand back, taking the ring with it. “F-Fine! Then you don't need to accept it!” His ears are bright red, and he trembles a bit in his embarrassment—it's adorable.

Eichi heaves a sigh, cupping Keito's cheeks and leaning in close.

“You don't need to be so embarrassed,” he sighs against Keito's lips, “I already told you I wanted to marry you.”

He holds Keito firmly as he connects their lips, making sure that he can't jerk away. Keito stiffens for a moment, before submitting to the kiss and melting against Eichi. He isn't sure what to make of the hand that grabs his own, but he gets a hint when he feels the ring pushed onto it.

It's a promise, just the same as when they were children.”

* * *

About two years after graduating from Yumenosaki, Keito and Eichi are in a train on their way home after a vacation.

Predictably, Eichi had passed out the moment he got comfortable in his seat, his entire body leaning against Keito's, head resting on his shoulder.

Humming quietly into Eichi's hair, Keito feels how his body drifts in his sleep, almost lulled to a rest himself just like that.

He manages to keep himself awake though, running his hand over the promise ring on Eichi's finger. He always feels youthful in Eichi's presence, like he's a teenager again, and that's just enough to coax him to be daring enough for his next course of action. With his free hand, he rummages through his bag, looking for that little velvet box that holds every promise Keito could ever wish to make.

Skillfully opening it one-handed, Keito pulls the ring out, and slides it onto Eichi's ring finger, right above the promise ring.

It has a floral design, simplistic at first glance but full of little details once you look closely at it—perfectly reminiscent of the pieces of grass and twine and flowers they had tied around each other's fingers when they were younger.

The winter chill in the air makes the tips of Eichi's fingers, ears, and nose pinkish, cheeks dyed with the hue of a cherry from the cold—the image is so picture-perfect that Keito implores his memory to chalk it down so it won't be forgotten.

Eichi's birthday is coming soon, so it's the perfect time for the two of them to get engaged.

_ When Eichi wakes up,  _ he decides,  _ I'll ask him if he really wants to marry me. _

A few hours later, once Eichi has woken up, the two of them are stargazing out on Eichi's balcony, huddling under a thick quilt. The soft whisper of Eichi's voice fades into the air around them like caramel, a comforting drawl.

“That one is Andromeda. She was sacrificed and tied to a rock to be eaten by a sea monster, but Perseus, a hopeful courter of Andromeda rescued her, and the two would go on to get married, and found and rule Persia.”

It goes in one ear and out the other for Keito, who's spent most of his time in the past few hours watching the way that Eichi's face dazzles in the starlight, like his eyes are galaxies of their own.

“Hey, Keito, are you listening?”

Crap, he's been caught.

“Uh, yeah; sacrifice, then marriage, right?”

Eichi stifles a laugh. “From the point of view of someone who only paid half-attention, I suppose that would be right.”

Keito ruffles Eichi's hair, but even in its disarray, it's still gorgeous. “You be quiet, it's your fault for being so beautiful.”

“I don't know whether to feel flattered that you think I'm beautiful or offended that you weren't interested in my explanation of the constellations.”

“Flattered, you should feel flattered,” Keito tells him. “Because I look at you and think:  _ I love you.” _

Eichi's ear might be red, maybe from embarrassment or the chill, but it doesn't matter, because his voice is soft as he responds. “You're being awfully affectionate, did something happen?”

“I want something to happen,” Keito answers, voice equally as soft and sweet. “I want the two of our souls to be bounded together like—which constellation was it again?—ah, right, Altair and Vega.”

Eichi goes quiet for a moment. “Are you proposing to me?”

Keito nods. “I am.”

“You don't have a ring?”

“I do, check your finger.”

Eichi lifts his left hand and extends his fingers, revealing the engagement ring Keito has slipped onto his finger before.

“Oh?” he questions, voice full of wonder and amusement. “When did this get here?”

“When we were on the train. You were just so peaceful and ethereal, I couldn't help myself.”

“Is that so?” Eichi's right hand goes to pull the ring off, dropping it into Keito's hand.

For a moment, Keito's blood runs cold. Did he go too far? Does Eichi hate him? Did he just ruin everything?

Thank God, he's just being needlessly anxious.

Like a bird chirping, Eichi giggles softly. “Do it properly, Keito, and then I'll give you a proper answer.”

Taking the ring in between his thumb and forefinger, Keito nods, using his right hand to tilt Eichi's face so that they're looking directly at each other.

“Eichi,” he whispers, voice fading into the air like their breath, but it seems to resound between them. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes, Keito,” Eichi answers, and when Keito focuses in on his eyes, he can see that tears are heading within them. “Like I promised.”

Keito places a kiss on Eichi's ring finger, before sliding the ring on, and lifting his head to kiss Eichi's tears away.

Surely, if everything can come together in these quiet moments brimming with love, it will all be alright.

Their promise hasn't been forgotten, nor will it ever be.

**Author's Note:**

> Keichi


End file.
